Universal foot for blower assembly



Oct. 8, 1957 M. l. LEVY UNIVERSAL FOOT FOR BLOWER ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 9. 1954 INVENTOR' MAE/av 1 LEVY A TfZDEA/EYS Oct. 8, 1957 M. a. LEVY UNIVERSAL FOOT FOR BLOWER ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 9, 1954 IN VEN TOR. MAP/0N J. LEVY BY W 4, XQ/Mfl AQY ATTORNEYS United States Patent UNIVERSAL FOOT FOR BLOWER ASSEMBLY Marion 1. Levy, Shaker Heights, Ohio, assignor to The National Radiator Company, .lohnstown, Pa., a corporation of Maryland Application June 9, 1954, Serial No. 435,421

1 Claim. (Cl. 230-133) This invention relates generally to blowers or fans and more particularly to adjustable universal feet for blower assemblies.

An object of this invention is to provide a blower assembly with universal feet attached thereto for adjusting the blower with its outlet at various desired angular discharge positions.

Another object of this invention is to provide a blower assembly with adjustable supporting feet having outwardly extended wing portions which engage apertures in the blower assembly and are capable of speedy assembly and adjustment.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a blower assembly with adjustable feet that can be engaged with said blower by positioning the feet and blower assembly at a specific angle with respect to each other and can be disengaged only by returning the parts to said particular angular position.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a universal foot for blower assemblies characterized by its structural simplicity, the ease of assembly of its parts, its strong and sturdy nature and its low manufacturing cost. Other features of this invention reside in the arrangement and design of the parts for carrying out their appropriate functions.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the accompanying drawings and description and the essential features will be set forth in the appended claim.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a rotary fan or blower housing having my 'novel adjustable'universal feet attached thereto; I

Figs. 2 through 5 are diagrammatic views illustrating the various angular positions to which the blower housing may be adjusted, through the use of my novel foot assemblies.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detailed vertical elevational view of an end member of the blower housing having one of my novel feet attached thereto.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmental sectional view illustrating how the wing elements of the foot assembly must first be held perpendicular to the plane of the end members of the blower assembly before they can be engaged with the end members.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged vertical fragmental sectional view taken along the planev of line. 88 of Fig. 6 and illustrating the final assembled interlocking'engagement be"- tween the foot assembly and the end member of th blower housing.

Referring now to Fig. 1, I have shown a centrifugal blower 10 having a hollow substantially tubular casing or housing 11 containing a circumferential and generally tangential discharge opening 11a in its side wall. The blower housing is provided with suitable end members 13 containing offset axial intake openings 13a through which air passes to the fan 14. The centrifugal fan or pump 14 is mounted directly upon the shaft of motor 15 by any suitable means, not herein shown. The motor 15 is hung within the blower housing or casing 11 by means of a yoke frame 16. The bottom of the blower housing is supported by my novel adjustable universal feet 18 which are secured to the end members 13, one on each side of the housing.

Referring now to Fig. 6, wherein I have shown an enlarged detailed vertical elevational view of the end member 13 and one adjustable universal foot member 18. The universal foot member 18 comprises generally a flat sheet material body 19 of greater width than height. The lower or ground-engaging edge of said body is seen to be straight and provided with an outwardly turned flange portion 20 which extends substantially at right angles to the plane of the foot body 19; see Fig. 1. The intersection of flange 20 and foot body 19 is reenforced byof the foot body 19 intermediate the side portions is curved to conform to the curvature of the axial inlets 13a of the end members 13. The body of foot 19 is seen to be extended outwardly beyond the highest side portion in order to provide a longer supporting surface. The shorter side portion is seen to have a substantially vertical edge 23, whereas the higher side portion has a sloping edge 24 which extends downwardly and outwardly to intersect the vertical edge 25 of the foot body at a point relatively near the flange 20. Each of the aligned sloping upper edges 21 and 22 of the end portions is provided with a wing or prong 28 having a neck portion 28a, as seen in Figs. 7 and 8, lying substantially perpendicular to the plane of the foot body portion 19 and an outwardly extending portion 28b connected to said neck and lying substantially parallel to the plane of the foot body 19. The plane of wing 28b is offset from the plane of body 19 by approximately the thickness of the metal of end member 13.

Each end member 13-contains apertures or slots arranged in pairs having a spacing equal to that of the wings 28. The pairs of slots, namely, 1-1, 22, 33 and 44 are disposed at various locations on the end members, but preferably at such angulation as to permit positioning the blower outlet 11a at approximately intervals as shown in Figs. 2 to 5. The pairs of slots in the end members 13 have widths no less than the width of the wings 28 and a height no less than the thickness of the material of the wings 28. Inthis regard, the neck portion 28a providing the offset of wings 28 has a length at least equal to the thickness of the material of the end member 13.

When assembling the foot members 18 upon the end members 13, the wingsmustfirstbe slidably inserted into a selected pair of. slots. In order 'to insert the wings 28 into the slots it is necessary to hold the plane of the foot body. 19 at. substantially right angles to'th e plane of the end member 13, as seen in Fig. 7. Since one side of the foot body portion 19 is higher than the other, it is neces sary for the sloping edges 21 and 22 to have the proper angulation, so that both wing members 28 may be inserted into a pair of slots simultaneously. From the relative perpendicular position of Fig. 7, the foot body 19 is swung downwardly through an arc of substantially 90, wherein the neck portion 28a forms a pivot with the selected pair of slots of end member 13, until the foot member reaches the position shown in Fig. 8. Fig. 8

Patented Oct. 8, 1957 shows the foot member 19 in its final assembled position, wherein the main body portion of the foot lies contiguous with and parallel to the outer surface of the end member 13 and the upper outwardly extending-portion of wing 28 lies contiguous with and parallel to theinner surface of the end member 13. The upper edge of theslot is seen to bear upon the upper surface of the neck portion 28a of the wing. When in the assembled position shown in Fig. 8, it is practically impossible for the wings 28 to become disengaged with the slotsin end members 13. For the wings to become disengaged, it would be necessary for the foot to swing in a reverse arc until it had again reached the position shown in Fig. 7. For purposes of preventing such movement, the foot body 19 is provided with apertures 29 which cooperate with complementary apertures 30 in the end members 13; Screws 31, as seen inv Fig. 6, extend through. the aperture and rigidly secure the foot 18 to theend member. 13, and thereby prevent accidental removal. of. the wings from, the slots of the end member.

Figs. 2 through show the four standard discharge outlet positions in which the blower is normally used. The circumferential discharge opening 11a determines the direction in which air will be discharged outwardly into the room to be ventilated, or into connected ductwork. Figs. 2 and 3 show the circumferential discharge opening disposed to the right and left respectively, while Figs. 4 and 5 show the opening disposed vertically upwardly or straight down, respectively. The offset arrangement of axial inlet opening 13a in. the side member 13 plays an,

important part in locating and positioning the foot member 18. The foot member 18 must be positioned so that,

no portion of the foot covers the inlet openings 13a. The problem is not so great in the. arrangement of Fig. 2. However, it is seen to become extremely acute in. Figs. 3, 4 and 5, wherein the curved upper edge of the foot member lies in close proximity to theannular edge of the offset inlet opening 13a. It should be noted in Figs. 3, 4 and 5 that the longer side portion of the foot member 18 is always connected with that portion of the end member 13 which presents a wider band of material between the edge of the inlet opening 13a and the outer edge of the end member 13. This longer side (at the left in Fig. 1 and at the right in Fig. 6) provides firmer support for the housing.

Referring again to Fig. 6, it will be seen that each foot member 18 can be adjusted to only two angular positions with respect to the end, member; It is apparent that the wings 28 of the foot 18 are complementary only to the respective pairs of slots 1 and 3, due to the variation in height of the side portions of the foot 18 and further, to the desire to keep the higher of said side members associated with the wider material portion of the end members, as heretofore described. dispose the blower housing at an angle defined by the pairs of slots 2 and 4 respectively, it is necessary to reverse the foot members so that the foot member 18 in Fig. 6 would be used in conjunction with the end member located at the end of the blower housing 10 opposite end member 13.

In Figs. 2 and 5 the foot member 18 viewed in Fig. l is seen to be engaged with the pairs of slots 1 and 4 respectively causing the housing 10 with its opening 11a to be disposed at two different angular discharge positions. Figs. 3 and 4 show the foot member (not seen in In order. to

4 Fig. 1) located at the other end of the housing 10, associated with pairs of slots 3 and 2 respectively and cause the housing 10 to occupy still other positions of angular adjustment.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that the adjustable universal feet may be made from sheet material at exceedingly low cost, and their construction will effect speedy foot assembly on the production lines and also in the field, permitting lower and more flexible inventories, fast delivery and shorter lead time.

It is obvious that other pairs of slots between 1, 2, 3 and 4 might be provided to set the blower outlet at other angles.

In view of the foregoing description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, it is believed that a clear understanding of the construction, operation and advantages of the device will be quite apparent to those skilledin this art.

It is to be understood, however, that even though there is herein shown and described a preferred embodiment of the invention, the same is susceptible to certain changes fully comprehended by thespirit of the invention.

What I claim is:

In a centrifugal blower having a casing and suitable spaced end walls containing axially aligned openings, said casing having an air outlet at one side thereof, the combination therewith of two individual adjustable feet for supporting said casing, each of said feet having a substantially linear bottom portion and a generally planar vertical wall portion, each of said feet having greater length than height, retaining prongs extending integrally from the upper edgeof each of said feet and spaced apart one prong near each end of the associated foot, each of said prongs being generally parallel to and being offset from its associated wall portion by means of neck portion lying substantially perpendicular to said wall portion, there being slots provided in said end members to receive said prongs for selective angular adjustment of each foot on its associated end member, each of said slots in one end member being axially aligned with a like slot in the opposite end member, there being a plurality of pairs of slots in each end member angularly spaced around said casing, each said pair of slots being spaced at the same spacing as said prongs, said prongs being insertable up to the neck portion into the said slots when said feet are in an initial position with their wall portions perpendicular to the plane of said end members, in assembled position eachv foot being oscillated approximately degrees about its neck portion-as a pivot from said initial position until its wall portion lies contiguous to the outer surface of its associated end member and with said prongs lying contiguous to the inner surface of the end member, and means preventing said prongs from being accidentally removed from said apertures, whereby a pair of saidfeet can be quickly assembled on said end members to support said casing with said air outlet in any one of a plurality of positions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 860,465 Hancock et al. July 16, 1907 2,614,701 Mapson Oct. 21, 1952 2,616,650 Thompson Nov. 4, 1952 2,649,242 Payne Aug. 18, 1953 

